Canada's Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development Mary Ng
Canada wants to deepen its economic ties with the EU and uphold global trading rules in the face of threatened U.S. tariffs, its trade minister Mary Ng told Reuters on Saturday.
The EU and Canada have benefited from a free trade agreement since 2017, which has boosted bilateral trade by 65%, and set up a raw materials partnership in 2021.
Ng met EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic for a lunch on Saturday following a meeting with Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the director general of the World Trade Organization in Geneva on Friday.
"Trade agreements are one thing, and we have seen really great numbers, but what more can we be doing to help Canadian businesses enter into any of the 27 member states...and what more can we do to the same in Canada" Ng said.
She said critical minerals and smaller businesses would be among the focus areas with the EU. The EU, in particular, is keen to forge partnerships to secure metals that are key for the energy transition - cobalt, lithium and nickel - to reduce its dependence on China.
Canada is also pushing to diversify its exports and set itself a target in 2018 of increasing non-U.S. exports by 50% by 2025. Ng said the country was on track to meet or exceed the target.
Canada struck trade deals with Indonesia in December and Ecuador last week and is pushing hard in the Indo-Pacific region. The minister is leading a delegation including more than 200 businesses to Australia, Singapore and Brunei next week.
"We are at the table with the countries in Southeast Asia, so the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. I took a very large delegation of Canadian businesses to the Philippines in December, to Indonesia, to markets like Vietnam, Malaysia, Japan, Korea," Ng added.
Ottawa threatened retaliatory duties and legal action against the United States after President Donald Trump announced tariffs on Canada and Mexico a week ago and before he paused their imposition for 30 days. Ng said Canada could challenge Washington at the WTO if tariffs were imposed.
"We would consider all of the options are available to Canada because Canada is a country that believes in a rules-based trading system," Ng said.
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Hong Kong's iconic landmarks dimmed their lights on Saturday evening for Earth Hour, joining a global movement to raise awareness about climate change and promote energy conservation. The city's participation in the annual event highlighted the growing commitment to sustainability and environmental
Rwanda-backed M23 rebels have announced plans to reposition their forces from the town of Walikale, which they seized earlier this week, in an effort to support broader initiatives aimed at addressing the ongoing conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
Pope Francis will make his first public appearance in five weeks on Sunday, offering a blessing from his hospital window as he recovers from double pneumonia.
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A new national forest stretching from the Cotswolds to the Mendips is set to be created, the UK government has announced. 20 million trees set to be planted across the West of England in the coming decades, creating at least 2,500 hectares of new woodland.
Hong Kong's iconic landmarks dimmed their lights on Saturday evening for Earth Hour, joining a global movement to raise awareness about climate change and promote energy conservation. The city's participation in the annual event highlighted the growing commitment to sustainability and environmental
Rwanda-backed M23 rebels have announced plans to reposition their forces from the town of Walikale, which they seized earlier this week, in an effort to support broader initiatives aimed at addressing the ongoing conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
UNICEF on Saturday urged the interim Taliban-led administration in Afghanistan to lift the ban on girls' secondary education as the new school year begins without girls for a third consecutive year.
Pope Francis will make his first public appearance in five weeks on Sunday, offering a blessing from his hospital window as he recovers from double pneumonia.
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